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David Hamilton was called up to the Red Sox on June 21 after spending the last two seasons speeding through the minor leagues, literally. In 2021, then a member of the Brewers organization, he stole 52 bases in 101 games across High-A and Double-A. Last year, the infielder stole 70 bases for the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs, a franchise record.
Fantasy managers always keep an eye out for a player who can contribute to the stolen bases column. Given how difficult stolen bases can be to find on the waiver wire at this point in the season, it is good to be familiar with clubs’ fleet-footed prospects so you are ready to pounce when a potential category booster suddenly has a path to regular playing time.
Injuries and subpar performance have plagued the Red Sox infield all season. Can Hamilton capitalize on his promotion, and reward fantasy managers in the process?
Minor League Track Record
One glance at his stat sheet and it is easy to see that Hamilton’s greatest asset is his speed. Before his call up he had recorded 27 stolen bases at Triple-A Pawtucket this season, giving him a career total of 149 SBs in 272 minor league games. Through his first six games as a major leaguer, Hamilton already has three SBs.
Hamilton’s career .254 batting average in the minors is nothing spectacular but his 10.8% walk rate since 2021 and a consistently low swinging strike rate indicate that he sees the ball well and will still be able to get on base even if he struggles to get the ball in play against major league pitching.
Infield Woes
The Red Sox have had trouble maintaining their middle infield depth in 2023. Coming into the season, the team already knew Trevor Story and Adalberto Mondesi would be starting the season on the injured list. Along the way their replacements, Yu Chang and most recently Pablo Reyes, have subsequently found their way to the injured list, too.
With Christian Arroyo and Enrique Hernandez being the only remaining options to cover the middle infield on their 26-man roster, the Red Sox had little choice but to call up Hamilton for his major league debut. So far, he has appeared in seven of the Red Sox’s eight games since he was called up and should continue seeing regular play at shortstop going forward, given Hernandez’s poor performance at the position this year.
Managers in deep leagues who need steals should give Hamilton a look. He may not provide to other categories but he will continue drawing starts until one of his predecessors returns from the injury list.
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